BHS tracks, rewards involvement with new program

By Katie Collins Brush News-Tribune Staff Writer

Posted:
01/29/2013 10:04:23 AM MST

Updated:
01/29/2013 10:04:46 AM MST

Increasing student achievement and empowering a passion for success has long been a primary goal for staff and administration at Brush High School (BHS) and with the recent implementation of a new 5-Star Student tracking program, promoting student involvement in clubs, activities and events will also help reward participation and school pride. “So much is measured by standardized tests,” noted BHS Assistant Principal and Athletic Director Jason Strauch, “but research shows that the more students are involved in clubs, activities and functions, the higher scores become. So many of our programs give students an extra push to learn real-world skills and teach personal success as well as academic,” continued Strauch, “and we'd like to reward those students to take time to support their school and classmates.”The 5-Star Student program is a web-based tracking system implemented at BHS in November and, although the program is in the initial stages of progress, has proven a faster and more effective way of tracking attendance at school, as well as attendance at extracurricular activities. At BHS, student-issued IDs come complete with the 5-Star bar-code that can be swiped along with the athletic passes that are also imprinted on IDs to give teachers and staff a better grasp on who is attending what, how long they attend and which students are taking part in certain activities.The codes can be scanned at anything from checking in and out of school, as well as functions like student dances to keep track of students.

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The information from scanned codes can then be tracked by school administration online through a website that is not likely to become published for the public due to privacy issues, but offers a great deal of options for club and activities coordinators as well as staff at BHS, who can break down attendance by activity type, demographics and more. “The system will help us find ways to get more students excited about our programs from band, drama events and FFA functions to athletics,” said Strauch. "And it will allow us to ultimately reward those students for their dedication and participation. It is just like with academics where tests allow us to see students who are disengaged. This will help us entice those students who up their involvement.”In a survey sent out to students, staff posed the question of just which rewards might be the most alluring and students noted field trips, discounted apparel and perhaps even a Friday movie or free time during class schedules as rewards that would appeal to them. Strauch also believes that offering discounts on activity fees will provide great motivation for students to attend functions. The program is designed to also track student attendance, providing more than just a sheet of paper to those kids who are motivated to earn perfect attendance while creating positive attention for their extra efforts. “We want to use this to ultimately drive academics, but also to show appreciation for involvement in other aspects of school life," Strauch said.The program can also be used to track teacher attendance and involvement and in following phases, BHS may also be able to use the 5-Star Student web program to reward community members for their support as well. “Issuing barcode cards to community members would also help us acknowledge the parents, fans and community for their encouragement and physical support,” noted Strauch, also mentioning that BHS is currently seeking suggestions for types of rewards to be offered. Although other schools throughout the state have also begun utilizing the 5-Star Student program, staff at BHS hope to take the information and system a step further by integrating many aspects of student achievement and even community involvement in order to become a model for 5-Star Student programs. he system may even become utilized at the middle school level in the future.